Moby-Dick Recap: Chapters 16-22
Waiting for Ahab
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A few years ago, I sent the first 50 pages of a novel I was working on to a friend and received the following feedback: “I want to read more, because a lot of this was setup and I’m curious to see how the action develops” which was a polite way of saying “nothing’s happened yet.” I smiled and replied, “Thank you!! So helpful!” while simultaneously thinking, “Excuse me, are you not familiar with the ‘no plot, just vibes’ approach to the novel” and “There is more dynamic tension in the subtle, angsty glances between these two characters, than in the most deeply-plotted thriller or—”
Look, my friend was (probably) right, but now I know what my comeback should have been: “There’s nothing wrong with 50 pages of pure setup, or even 100 pages of setup. Moby-Dick did it.”
Yes, in “Merry Christmas,” the last chapter of this week’s readings, Ishmael and Queequeg have finally boarded the Pequod and set sail. It only took twenty-two chapters and 90 pages in my edition (122 pages in my partner’s edition), but I will admit, when it finally happened, they set off with a knockout of a closing sentence.
Ship and boat diverged; the cold, damp night breeze blew between; a screaming gull flew overhead; the two hulls wildly rolled; we gave three heavy-hearted cheers, and blindly plunged like fate into the lone Atlantic.
O hell yeah, let’s get this party started. But first, I guess we should back up and discuss the previous chapters.
Chapter 16 (“The Ship”), yeah, that was a long one. Ismael sets out to pick a ship for him and Queequeg at Queequeg’s request. There’s a fake-out moment when someone we expect to be Ahab is actually some other dude, Captain Peleg. In almost every chapter this week, Ahab’s presence looms. Ishmael asks repeatedly about him but he’s always conveniently too sick to make an appearance; a stranger says doom and gloom things about him; Ahab scurries on board the night before they set sail only to hide and brood in his cabin when they leave port; he shares the same name as the evil idol-worshipping ruler in the Bible, etc., etc., these bad vibes keep adding up, yet all the while Ishmael keeps deluding himself, saying “This is fine” to each red flag.
It’s setting up a lot of anticipation for Ahab’s eventual on-page appearance, especially reading it today, when we know he’s such an iconic character. “Can Ahab live up to the hype” is something I caught myself thinking during this week’s readings.
Anyway, Peleg introduces Ishmael to Captain Bildad, keeper of the ship’s blockchain. Did anyone else feel like Bildad and Peleg were in cahoots here? Like, the whole good cop / bad cop routine over what share of bitcoin Ishmael gets (and their fake physical brawl over it) was ultimately so that Ishmael would settle for the 300th share (slightly worse than what he expected), right?
Despite being low-key ripped off, Ishmael returns to the inn to excitedly tell Queequeg that he’s found them a great ship, but after waiting respectfully for him to finish celebrating Ramadan, he knocks on the door to no answer. Queequeg’s also locked the door from the inside. Ishmael fears the worst and gets the landlady. It’s rare that I visualize scenes in novels, that’s just not how I read, but I can totally see (and hear) the slapstick comedy in this chapter, from the landlady melodramatically wailing that she’s sure Queequeg has killed himself, to everyone running around panicking, to Ishmael frantically breaking down the door only to find Queequeg calmly sitting there and being like wtf.
After that bit of silliness, Ishmael takes Queequeg to be enlisted on the Pequod. At first, Bildad and Peleg refuse, saying they won’t have non-Christians (also, Peleg’s intentional mispronouncing of an ethnic name is as tired in 1851 as it is in 2022), but man do they change their tune when they see Queequeg’s harpooning skills. They’re nearly falling all over themselves to sign him up and they give him the 90th bitcoin share. Ishmael, to his credit, doesn’t seem upset at all that Queequeg got a way better share than him. He’s genuinely happy for his friend and simply glad they’ll be together. Cute!
Happy as clams, our favorite twosome head back to the inn, but are stopped by this shabbily dressed stranger named Elijah, who acts evasive and annoying and whose name is another Biblical reference (a footnote in my edition says it’s “the name is that of the prophet who denounced Ahab”). He hints at Ahab’s evilness, but then when Ismael presses him for more details, he throws up his hands and says, “What? Me? I never said anything!” and scampers away.
Next, we get a little inventory of everything packed on the ship. Ish and Quee put their trunks on there, but want to cuddle and enjoy chowder until the last possible moment, so they sleep at the inn until the night before the ship is ready to leave. At the crack of dawn, they prepare to board the Pequod. Before they do, Elijah shows up again and asks if they saw four or five men board the ship before him, and Ishmael did, but before he can ask any more questions, Elijah’s all, “What? I didn’t say anything! Morning ye! Morning ye! Probably won’t see you guys again until Judgement Day. What? I didn’t say that, I’m out.”
There’s a few more shenanigans, Peleg and Bildad have trouble saying goodbye to the Pequod, but then, we’re finally off! It’s the big moment we’ve been building toward and I don’t even know how to feel? Moby-Dick is not divided into Parts, or Acts, but it definitely feels like we’re moving into a new Act after this. I predict the novel’s about to change too. We’re going to meet everyone else on the boat that’s not Queequeg and Ishmael and the chapters might even start being different styles (look, I know those chapters on the history of whaling or whale oil are coming at some point). And if the novel’s entering a new era, then these recaps are going to be taking on a different form as well… expect to hear from a few more voices beyond my own, and some new experiments in format.
The ship set out on Christmas Day. Whale Weekly is another Substack that will send a serialized version of Moby-Dick. Whale Weekly plans to start in December 2022 with installments continuing for approximately three years, in accordance with the passage of time in the novel. My hunch is that they will either start on Christmas Day, or start a bit earlier so that Chapter 22’s “Merry Christmas” sends on Christmas Day. Either way, we’ll be wrapped up by then, so if you already know you’ll miss the novel after having your Moby Dick Summer, sign up to have a long three-year Moby Dick Winter.
Also, while we’re on the topic of serialized novels, much respect to the OG, the Don, the GOAT—Dracula Daily. Many of you subscribe to that already, but if you want to know more about Dracula Daily, and the many Substacks that Dracula Daily inspired, check out this post from Substack’s Community Team, in which Moby Dick Summer receives a kind shoutout! I should also mention that we got some love from Book Riot, thank you to Ashley Holstrom.
I absolutely love how many of these publications have sprouted up, serializing so many different books in the public domain. It’s bringing new readers to these old books in a way that feels fresh, organic, and exciting.
But to return to Moby-Dick, one thing I’m consistently hearing, from both friends and folks in the comments, is how much you’re enjoying the writing itself. You’re deeply relating to certain lines or simply appreciating Melville’s clever wordplay. Sometimes I find myself reading too fast, or reading for pure comprehension, so it’s nice to be reminded to slow down and appreciate how great some of the sentences are. So thanks to everyone who is sharing isolated individual lines. Here’s one that RobS shared from Chapter 17. Chapter 17, if you recall, is the chapter that has all that slapstick business with Queequeg locked in his room, yet it also holds this beautiful line: "for we are all somehow dreadfully cracked about the head, and sadly need mending."
I absolutely loved any of the Peleg and Bildad scenes. These two are the perfect comedy duo! From the (terrible) butchering of Queequeg's name to the launching of the ship, any scene where they were was golden.